None of us can be Rambai, that too when we are 106. In the ongoing 18th National Open Athletics Championship in Dehradun, he won gold in 100 and 200-meter sprints as well as in shot-put and broke his own record set at the age of 104.
At present, there are 15 crore people above 60 years of age in the country and they are increasingly feeling alienated, cut off from the youth. This is the reason why they are settling in cities labeled as ‘Retirees City’ like Visakhapatnam, Pondicherry, Dehradun, Pune, Nashik, Nagpur, Coimbatore, Manali, and Dharamshala to name a few.
But even these cities do not have a visionary plan like a ‘Geriatric Care Policy’ to take care of the growing elderly population there. Geriatric care refers to the planning and coordination of care for the elderly and people with physical or mental illness, taking into account their future needs, improving their quality of life, and maintaining their independence as long as possible. have to keep.
Since Pune roughly calculated that there would be half a million elderly population, in November 2022 they came out with a geriatric care policy, a first at the time. It was proposed that there would be help centers in every ward office for those seeking treatment, guidance, legal advice, mental health counseling, physiotherapy, etc.
For example, 75-year-old residents can meet a guide at any ward office, who will point them to verified helpers. Unfortunately, this draft plan has not yet received the attention of the big people. With falling fertility rates, rising life expectancy in the country, and the way we are going through a demographic transition, we cannot be so lax.
Its positive aspect is the growth of the working class, thereby reducing the dependency ratio. Soon we will see another challenge with the rapid increase in the number of elderly and the health and social issues associated with it, as a large population will move out of working age, leading to old age dependency. To meet the challenge in this context, we have to relook at the old age program.
Here are some facts that need consideration. When the Lok Sabha members were elected in 2019, the average age of the cabinet was 60. The country’s elderly population (60+) is expected to reach 194 million in 2031, a 41% increase from 138 million recorded in 2021.
People born during the baby boom period (1947–1964) are now in their 60s or older. The National Policy for Senior Citizens 2011 (an amendment to the 1999 policy) is yet to be implemented at the Centre. A survey of 10,000 senior citizens in 10 cities of the country revealed that 51% feel lonely.
Often we call ourselves a youth country because we have a large population of productive age and people are growing in the senior citizen group and not in 0-5 age group. The elderly population around the world is growing faster than the total population growth (1.2%) and is expected to increase further. So it is high time to think about geriatric care and create some cities that can take care of this age group.
The bottom line is that city planners should seriously add geriatric care to the blueprint, it’s the next big thing to grab attention, be it politics, business, or age-related marketing services.
